The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Lowers Holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. $SLF

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in Sun Life Financial Inc. by 9.2%, selling 873,789 shares, and now owns approximately 1.51% of the company worth $493,782,000.
• Several analysts have adjusted their ratings for Sun Life Financial, with National Bank Financial downgrading it to “hold” and Royal Bank of Canada increasing its price target from $82.00 to $88.00.
• Sun Life Financial's most recent earnings report showed $1.29 earnings per share, matching analysts' expectations, while revenue fell short at $6.65 billion compared to expected $7.34 billion.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its holdings in Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE:SLF - Free Report) TSE: SLF by 9.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,580,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 873,789 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 1.51% of Sun Life Financial worth $493,782,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SLF. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 47.2% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,221,447 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $241,643,000 after purchasing an additional 1,353,508 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 2,071.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,350,751 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $80,160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288,545 shares in the last quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Sun Life Financial by 1,002.9% in the 1st quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 1,120,888 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $64,216,000 after purchasing an additional 1,019,254 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Sun Life Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $50,968,000. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Sun Life Financial by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 10,338,250 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $591,968,000 after acquiring an additional 846,735 shares in the last quarter. 52.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SLF has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Sun Life Financial in a report on Monday, May 12th. Scotiabank raised Sun Life Financial to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. National Bank Financial cut Sun Life Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Barclays cut Sun Life Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Sun Life Financial from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Sun Life Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $88.00.

Sun Life Financial Stock Performance

Sun Life Financial stock traded up $0.22 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $58.45. The company's stock had a trading volume of 493,562 shares, compared to its average volume of 868,534. The company has a 50 day moving average of $61.37 and a 200-day moving average of $59.82. The stock has a market cap of $32.91 billion, a PE ratio of 14.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.89. Sun Life Financial Inc. has a one year low of $52.44 and a one year high of $66.81.

Sun Life Financial (NYSE:SLF - Get Free Report) TSE: SLF last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.29. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.34 billion. Sun Life Financial had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 7.59%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.11 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sun Life Financial Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sun Life Financial Company Profile

Sun Life Financial Inc, a financial services company, provides savings, retirement, and pension products worldwide. The company operates in five segments: Asset Management, Canada, U.S., Asia, and Corporate. It offers various insurance products, such as term and permanent life; personal health, which includes prescription drugs, dental, and vision care; critical illness; long-term care; and disability, as well as reinsurance.